Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. April 14, 2019 Text: Luke 19:3, Old Testament: Isaiah 50:4-9a, New Testament: Luke 1:28-40 It’s time for change. Social change! Economic change! Political change! We want it. We want it now! Emotions fill the halls of power. The nation is anxious. People are unsettled. Crowds on the street demand leadership that brings genuine change. They want an end to the impasse paralyzing government. A government that isn’t…
Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. April 7, 2019 Text: Luke 15:20, Old Testament: Isaiah 43:16-21, New Testament: Luke 15:11-32 Several years ago, I was called to visit a man whose wife had died. He was living alone in a senior care facility north of Pittsburgh. He was alone, except for the residents and staff around him. I talked with his care givers and they said he had no family who visited. He wasn’t…
Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. March 31, 2019 Text: Luke 15:4, O.T.: Joshua 5:9-12, N.T.: Luke 15:1-10 Near the tenth hole on Meadowink Golf Course outside Murrysville sits a stone monument. It marks the location of a log house that stood during the Revolutionary War. The log house had been owned by Michael Rugh. In 1778, it was burned by Indians loyal to the British. Michael, his wife Phoebe, their four-year old daughter Mary,…
Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. March 24, 2019 Text: Luke 13:2, O.T.: Isaiah 55:1-9, N.T.: Luke 13:1-9 Sin. The little three letter word that is dividing the Church. Some Christians complain it’s negative to talk about sin. Confessions of sin are downers. They don’t focus on the positive. Worship is better without the mention of sin. Let’s stay focused on the positive. People are basically good. Others Christians say we’re avoiding the truth…
Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. March 17, 2019 Text: Luke 13:35c, O.T.: Genesis 1-12, 17-18, N.T.: Luke 13:31-35 Washington, D.C. is the national center of power for our country. Congress, the President and the Supreme Court lead our nation from its white marble colonnades. Over 350 million Americans expect from these people the greatest economic and military leadership for the peace and tranquility of not only America, but the human race. Leaders of…